


[In Roses]

by cerealbaths (timelordangel)



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, However you want to read it - Freeform, M/M, Slice of Life, open relationships/ ot4, rhink, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-14 14:47:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18478426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timelordangel/pseuds/cerealbaths
Summary: Miscommunication, resolved.





	[In Roses]

Stevie knows something is amiss the second she walks into the studio an hour and a half later than usual.

In her left hand she has a carrying tray with three low-fat lattes and a half-eaten donut tucked into the fourth hole. The silence is too thick; the amount of people focused firmly on screens without a hint of joy in their eyes is alarming. She stands at the entrance to the common work area and tugs out her headphones.

“Hello,” Stevie says with a strange inflection.

Only a couple of people turn to look at her, their eyes wide.

“Hi,” Alex gives her a firm-lipped smile.

“What’s going on?”

“Well,” Alex begins,

“- mummy and daddy are fighting,” Kacie deadpans from her desk, her eyes still attached to her desktop.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t go in there if I were you,” Derek says.

“Oh, I’m _going_ in there,” Stevie rolls her eyes, increases her grip on the paper tray and heads for the far hallway, the one leading straight into Rhett and Link’s office.

She hears it from twenty feet away, but she can’t make out what they are saying. For a second her resolve loosens and she almost turns, but the lattes are already getting cold.

“Knock knock,” Stevie forces a sing-songy tone, turning the handle in slow-motion to give the men a second to control themselves.

“Stevie, not now-” Link barks, “also, you’re really late and that’s not-”

“Link, she told us she had to deal with maintenance people in her place this morning, don’t take this out on her. Stevie-”

“I brought you idiots coffee,” Stevie steadies herself, her hands shaking slightly at the quip Link made. Fear of disappointment runs in her veins, paralyzes her unless she pretends to ignore it.

“Thanks,” Rhett swallows like the last thing in the world he wants right now is a cup of coffee. Link stands there, looking both frozen and on fire at the same time. Just by this, Stevie knows who is winning whatever argument is happening here.

She frowns and says, “What’s going on here?”

Link rolls his eyes, “Nothing. It doesn’t matter.”

“It’s not nothing, Link-” Rhett huffs, breaking his makeshift composure he created for Stevie’s benefit, “we’re just working through something. We’ll be fine. Thanks for the coffee.” He wants her to leave.

Link looks irreparably sad suddenly, his eyes burning in his skull.

“Everyone out there looks like they’ve seen a ghost, maybe you two should split up for a little bit? Link, can I go over the call sheet for filming day with you in my office?” Stevie doesn’t give him a choice as she practically drags Link with her as she leaves.

Rhett stands in the middle of the room for a long time after the door closes.

Stevie’s office is quiet.

“They heard?” Link messes with the stress toy rainbow on Stevie’s desk, feeling like he’s at the principal's office for bad behavior.

“Not a lot.”

“But enough,”

“Probably,” Stevie sits back as the printer behind her gurgles out the schedule.

“Aren’t you curious?” Link folds his arms over his chest, strangling the rainbow against his chest.

“I’ve tried to understand your arguments before, but they’re too much. It’s never about one thing, it’s two-hundred things that you guys let accumulate. I’m sure what started it was your water bottle leaking and then the entirety of niagara falls came after.”

“Well,” Link huffs, a little irritated and a little assuaged by the declaration of exactly how transparent they are. “I don’t think you’re wrong.”

“But you want to talk about it, so go ahead,” Stevie slides the printed schedule across the desk to rest in front of Link.

Except it’s not the schedule, it’s a picture of Link’s family in 2016 when they went to Disney. All five of them are on some kind of hang-down coaster, bright blue plastic guards swallow Lando whole. The only thing sticking out is a big grin, mirrored by the two kids on either side of him. Christy is on the far right, her bare feet dangling in defeat after giving up her sandals to the operator, and Link is on the far left. He’s the only one not looking at the camera, but his mouth is wide open in a victorious shout of happiness, his eyes looking left at his family.

Link smiles and then it breaks, crumbles across his face like a torrent of emotions he doesn’t want to experience, not right now. He lets out a sob into his hands, already attempting to stifle his emotions before the first tear escapes.

“Oh,” Stevie frowns. She had meant to make him happy.

Link leans onto his elbows, face still tucked away into his palms. Stevie knows he is crying because every few seconds another drop of saltwater hits the picture and bleeds the ink into little soggy pools of color.

“Hey now,” Stevie attempts to comfort her boss, “It’ll be okay. He said it himself, you guys are going to be fine.”

“I- I know,” Link sniffs hard, scrubbing at his face with his palms before turning back to her. “He just is so goddamn stubborn.”

“What’s going on, even?” Stevie caves, finally.

Link takes a steadying breath and laces his fingers behind his head, the rainbow finally falling to the floor with a small bounce. “I suggested taking tonight off.”

“That’s it?”

“Yep. He basically accused me of being a lousy business partner and, I dunno. I lost my mind.”

They sit silently for a moment as she allows him to come to his own conclusion, losing him a few seconds in to another fit of tears. He grabs around for the stress toy, the absence of the rainbow fueling his breakdown.

“You two are beyond stressed. You’ve been dealing with the society, touring, and Smosh all at the same time, you gotta give yourselves some time to process shit. He’s just stressed, Link. He’s taking it out on you. You want a night off? Go for it. I’ll stay late tonight.” Stevie sounds so sure, so well equipped to handle this mental destruction. Link needs this so badly.

Link sniffs hard and says, “It’s Thursday, we were planning to stay until ten. I can’t do that to you. Or him, truthfully.”

Stevie sighs and slides over the real call sheet. “Sounds like you know what to do, then. Can I have this call sheet approved, please?”

Link barely glances at it before adding a wiggly signature, wiping his face one last time before standing.

“Thanks, Link. Remember- thirty five years. Nothing can end this now.”

-

Link takes a detour through the kitchen on the way back to his office, splashing water on his face and then procrastinating at the fridge when Chase walks up.

“Hey,” Chase braves, “everything good?”

Link doesn’t look away from the fridge, sure that he wiped off his physical anguish but unconfident that it won’t show in his face.

“Yep.”

“Okay,” Chase says, tangibly awkward.

Link wants him to leave so badly it ends up making him laugh. “Want to just order pizza for everyone for lunch?”

Chase lets out a relieved laugh and says, “Duh. Cheeses and Pepperonis?”

“Yeah. And chicken barbecue for Rhett,” Link adds, fishing the corporate card out of his wallet.

When he finally returns to the office Rhett is on the sofa tucked into something on his laptop, headphones on.

“Hey,” Link says, because he knows Rhett isn’t listening to music. There’s nothing Rhett could slide past him now, not after this long of knowing him.

Rhett feigns not realizing that Link had walked in and slides off one ear. “Hey.”

Link slides into his desk and only says, “I ordered pizza for everyone.”

Rhett is startled, confusion littering his face as he squints at Link. “Did you get a barbecue in the bunch?”

“Mhm,” Link replies.

From where Link can’t see, Rhett smiles.

-

Everyone else has filtered out of the studio when Stevie sticks her head into their office.

“Heeey guys, just headed out. Need anything from me before I go?”

Link shakes his head, giving her a wave. When she’s gone, Link speaks for the first time in two hours. “Wonder if any pizza is left for dinner.”

“I-” Rhett says, “don’t eat the pizza.”

Link huffs, annoyed, “Technically we both paid for it but if it weren’t for me it wouldn’t be here at all. Tell me why I can’t eat the dang pizza, Rhett.”

“Because I, uh, made us dinner reservations for tonight. Like, a week ago, and I’d really like to keep them.”

Link is shocked. Because he really thought Rhett couldn’t slip anything past him at this point, really thought he had this giant man all figured out. But apparently he doesn’t know a _damn_ thing. “You what?” Link whispers.

“The Olive. Downtown,” Rhett drums his fingers on his thighs. “It’s been a while since we’ve gone on a date.”

“Is that why you were so mad earlier? I wanted to go home?”

“I’ve never been able to surprise you, I thought for once I could. And you almost ruined it,” Rhett breathes out a shallow laugh. “I didn’t mean to get worked up, I’m just-”

“Stressed.”

“Yeah, and I know you are too. And I guess I’m sorry, because I truly would love to take tonight off.”

“Let me at least change into something nicer from costuming,” Link smiles, really smiles, for the first time today.

They both play dress up in the giant GMM closet until they’re doubled over in laughter, Rhett raking his hands through his hair in a desperate attempt to get the rockets going up again. Link had practically attacked him with a black button-down that didn’t end up fitting.

In the end the Link in the mirror is reflecting a warm blue sweater and tight black jeans, completely inappropriate for the California weather just outside the studio, but beautiful according to the man behind him, the one wrapping long arms around Link’s waist.

“Hey,” Rhett whispers from where his chin rests on Link’s shoulder. Link leans into the touch, thankful beyond measure that they are alone here in the studio. The mythical castle they have built together has ivy winding over the walls of Link’s mind, twisting and shaping into delicate forms and wrapping Rhett against him, forever.

They hold hands as they pack up their stuff and head to the parking lot, because they both realized that they don’t do that enough. Regarding both the holding of hands and the leaving of work, with all the work left behind. As they head into the sunset, figuratively, metaphorically, and actually, truly, drive toward the setting sun, Rhett adjusts his position to slip a hand behind Link’s back, just enough to lift his shirt and rub his thumb over the soft skin there.

“Hey, Rhett,” Link asks as he leans into the touch, his body sinking back into the passenger seat.

“Yeah, brother?” Rhett grins, eyes locked on the windshield ahead.

“Love you,” Link smiles back, because he can’t help it. Not this time. The highway drags on around them, traffic tight and the sun-bleached pavement hot beneath them. But right now, _right now_ , it is just them.

And it’s more than enough.


End file.
